Galloway's Run/Walk--Five Marathons Compared

Since 2007, I've been using Jeff Galloway's Run/Walk/Run method as my key strategy in training and in races longer than a half-marathon. As a student of systems, I've tried to learn from my experience.  I've also tried to pass along what I've learned so others might benefit.  Here's my first post on the method from September, 2008 and then my second from last December, which focused on the nuts and bolts of using this method.  And here's the post of the combined experience of Jeff and me in the same race, the 2009 Portland Marathon.  This post adds further data.

The data is, in essence, a lab experiment on Run/Walk which emerged this year, not by design as much as by the advantageous confluence of weather, course design and schedule. I think this might be helpful to those using Jeff's methods.

Five road marathons, all with similar courses in similar, advantageous weather conditions make this comparison possible.  I used different run/walk plans in each race, however, which makes for useful comparisons.  What might we learn? Here's the sequence and essentials.

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It all started with the Carmel Marathon run on April 21, 2012 in suburban Indianapolis.  It is a flat course which happened on a cloudy day with temperatures in the mid 40s throughout and a 15mph north wind.  I used a 6 minute run/1 minute walk sequence through mile 24.5, then ran it in.  This yielded an official time of 4:33:25, at the time my second best marathon of this running era, plus a 3 second negative split.  My own race report is here.  My detailed notes on mile splits from the day are in this image...click to expand.   Sorry, no amount of digital processing can improve my handwriting!




The Lesson?  I could hold a 6/1 for the entire race and feel very good at the end of a marathon.  I also learned I could hold even mile splits over a long distance.   In much of my training, I use a 4/1 and in previous races I had faded.  Not so at Carmel...very encouraging.

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Marathon #2 took me to Traverse City, Michigan for the Bayshore Marathon on May 25, 2012.  It was a largely flat course with some minor rollers, run this year on a partly cloudy day with temperatures shifting from the low 50s to about 70 and no wind.  Since I was running a trail marathon two weeks later, I took a then-radical plan to shift my pace.  I would run a 3/1 through mile 10, then a 4/1 to the finish.  As it played out, I felt so good, I ran the last 2.2  and finished in 4:40:16, with almost 4 minute negative split. The second race in a row with no wall, feeling marvelous at the end.  My race report here.




The Lesson?  A slow, conservative start does nothing to diminish one's overall time and actually served as a "governor" to hold me back in the face of the adrenaline of a big race in a beautiful setting.  This confirms much of what Galloway has been saying for years.   Interestingly, when I shifted to a 4/1, I didn't really budge my overall average mile pace very much.  But I did reserve energy to make the later miles very enjoyable.  And the effort paid off in an enjoyable trail marathon in very hot, hilly conditions two weeks later.

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Marathon #3 of this unique sequence of road marathons was the Wineglass Marathon in Corning, NY  on September 30, 2012.  It is net-downhill, point-to-point, unhyphenated, fairly flat course.  I got yet another good weather day, as it was cloudy with temperatures in the low 50s and no wind.  Knowing I was running in Chicago just 7 days later, I planned a 3/1 sequence through mile 16,  shifting to a 4/1, with a possible run at the end.  It worked so well,  I ran the final 3 miles uninterrupted.  I was rewarded by getting under 4:40, to 4:38:55 and another negative split.  I felt awesome at the end...still no wall, still no cramps, a truly fun marathon.  Race Report here.




The Lesson?  The understated start, this time, led to a truly improved per-mile pace when I shifted to the 4/1 and even better speed when I ran at the end.  Conditions certainly helped...a cool day is a good day for a marathon.  And I loved this race, it was just awesome.  And another real test awaited, 7 days later.

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Marathon #4 was a big one, the Chicago Marathon on October 7, 2012.  Chicago is well known as having one of the flattest marathon courses layouts in the world.  What was lucky was the weather; in recent years, Chicago has had very hot temps but not this day; yet again, I had a cool day to run.  Temps were barely 40 at the start and clouds kept it under 45 at the finish, with very little wind in the "Windy City".    Strategically, though, I was on new turf, as I had never run two marathons one week apart; how should I approach it?  I decided to keep the "easy early" view, running a 3/1 through mile through mile 18, then bumping to a 4/1.  My real hope, though, was to run, continuously, the final 3+ miles down Michigan Avenue.  For the first time in this marathon sequence, I altered the plan based on conditions...I sensed some fatigue at mile 18, so didn't shift to the 4/1 until mile 20.  It allowed me to recover a bit, though, and I did run all the way down Michigan Avenue.  Finishing time of 4:48:28, an 8 minute negative split.  I felt terrific at the end and truly enjoyed this world-class event.  My Race Report on Chicago is here.

The Lesson?  First, I could actually run marathons, enjoyably, on consecutive weekends.  Second, this pattern of slow early, quicker late, works.  Third, traffic matters...my mile splits were a bit slower than the week earlier largely due to dodging and swerving around my 40,000 fellow runners.  A 6 minute wait at a portapot in mile 4 had an impact as well.  

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Marathon #5 of the year's journey was in north Georgia at the Chicamauga Battlefield Marathon on November 10, 2012.  It is a friendly course with just a few rollers on a partly cloudy day with temps from 38 at the start to 50 at the end, with little wind. Pacing was very different for this race though.  I ran the race with pals Wes and Darrell and we stuck together early,  running a full mile, then taking a 30 second walk break at each mile marker.  I stuck with the guys on this pattern through mile 4.5, but realized it wasn't going to work for me that day.  So I fell back, using a 3/1 through mile 13, then a 4/1 through 24 and a run to the end.  I got a reward for all this, however, with my 2nd fastest marathon of this era, 4:27:32.  I had no wall at all during the race but I felt it at the end, though, with some foot and calf cramps.  Race Report here. 

The Lesson?  The quick start, "banking" 4 sub 9:30 miles early, clearly helped my total time.  Psychologically, I realized around mile 16 I had a shot to get under 4:30, so I pushed the effort.  With no other race near term, I knew the day stood on its own.  So, I got the goal but the cramping at the end demonstrated that the effort took a toll.  And many times, that's OK.  

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One other thing.  Many have wondered, openly, if adopting a run/walk strategy in training slows you down.  And I have some data on that too.

In between Chicago and Chicamauga, I ran a small half marathon not far from my home, the Muncie Mini Marathon in David Letterman's favorite town, Muncie, Indiana, on October 27, 2012.  I wanted some "speed work", using the term very loosely, as I'm not that fast of a guy.  I decided to simply run the HM continuously, shooting to go under 1:55.  Amazingly, the weather was great again, with temps in the mid 40s on a very flat course, though with a 15mph wind out of the north.  My race report is here and below are my mile splits:  

Finish time of 1:52:58 (8:38/mile average) was very encouraging.  And, yes, there is still some speed in there for a 59 year old guy. 

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To finish five full marathons with flat courses on good weather days in one calendar year provides a very useful way to analyze running strategies.  All five were enjoyable without the "Wall".  Four of the five times, the last half of the marathon was quicker than the first half.  The only untoward event was some post-race cramps after the quickest of the five. 

This is a long post but I wanted to capture all this information in one place...those who are interested in run/walk might benefit.  If you have questions, you can see on the side how to contact me...feel free.  Thanks for reading.  

And, no matter how you run or walk or run/walk, please just persevere. 

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Galloway Run/Walk Method: Update on 5 Years Experience

In September, 2008, I wrote a summary post on my experience to that date using Jeff Galloway’s run/walk approach to distance running.  Recently, several folks have asked me to update my experience and it seemed useful to do so as a reference.  

Jeff Galloway has suggested for some time now most of us mere mortal runners can go longer and farther by interspersing walking with our running.  I’ve been doing this since January, 2007.

It works. And I'm still enthusiastic about this approach to running.  

I run/walk virtually every training run I do.  It is simply second nature for me now.  The mechanics just are part of how I run. I don't think its a coincidence I can’t recall a single injury in the nearly 5 years since I started which has caused me to stop training.  And, in that period of time, I’ve finished 20 marathons/ultras and a lot of shorter races.  Given that I’m not anticipating a spot on the US Olympic Team, that’s all I could ask for...to be able to run, enjoyably, injury-free, year round.  

Why does this method seem to hold injuries at bay?  Jeff has long held breaking up a long run with regular walks is worth a lot.  I agree.  So many times, especially during marathons or long training runs, I’ve felt fatigue or discomfort start to set in.  Amazingly (and it still truly amazing to me), I’ll go to a regular walk break, collect my thoughts, perhaps extend it by 10-15 seconds, and the situation improves.  Often, after one or two more of the regular walk breaks, I’m back to normal.  It’s happend too many times to dismiss as mere coincidence.  The variation in pace/muscle/jostle/mental rhythm is restorative.  

In addition to this, I’ve come to appreciate other benefits of run/walk in the past few years.  

Run/Walk allows for real fine tuning during a race or run.  On several occassions, I’ve been deep into a race when weather or fatigue simply causes the run to start to head south.  If I was simply running, I’d be forced to slow down.  But, as the mind gets mushy during a long run, that can be hard to do.  It’s been much better to throttle back to a lower run/walk ratio.  The shift from a 4/1 (run 4 minutes/walk 1 minute) to a 2/1 is invigorating, as odd as that may sound.  It allows a much more precise improvisation as the need dictates. The associated precision builds confidence. And confidence is huge, mentally.

At a macro level, run/walk also allows specificity in training.  For example, last summer, as I planned out the race calendar for this fall, it became evident that the Veterans Marathon on November 12 might be a chance for a “quick” marathon for me.  As a result, I began to train towards running a 6/1 pattern for that race...doing most of my training at 6/1, mentally preparing for the running sequences longer than my base ratio of 4/1, constructing some intermediate time windows for this pace. And, in this case, it worked.  With that race under my belt, I’m now looking at a series of maintainance races during the long winter months.  Time is not a big concern in these events, so I’ve dialed much of the training back to a 4/1, content to simply get the miles in and keep running.  And I might even run two of them at a 3/1 or 2/1. Looking farther ahead though, I just signed up for a race in May which may led itself to a 6/1 or 7/1. I can mull the plan during the long cold runs in the next few months.

Yet, what about racing?  Can you ever go “fast”?  Are you doomed to slow running?  Here’s how I’ve made sense of this.

For half-marathons and shorter, in moderate temperatures, I usually run continually.  Over the past 13 months, I’ve set PRs at the 5K, 10K, 15K and half marathon distances.  How does this work??  Again, I’m not entirely sure, but I think part of it is the fact that using run/walk in all my training allows me to pack on more injury-free miles.  And the larger mileage base allows me to run the occasional race hard.   Put another way, it keeps my legs fresh enough to go hard.  Functionally, I set the pace for these races according to what I can comfortably hold through the run segments of my normal training--it’s not like I can suddenly do 6 minute miles.  Yet, with a decent training base, you can go hard for shorter races.  And it’s kind of amazing to me that I can even consider a half marathon a “shorter” race.  

How do I keep track of running and walking?  Do I stare at my watch all the time?  No way..that would be awful.  I simply use the Timex Ironman 100 lap watch.  It has an interval timer feature in which I can set up my walk and run breaks.  Geek note-- I always set my walk time as segment one, my run time as segment two and set the watch to loop back continuously.  Why?  Because at the end of segment one, it beeps for two seconds, whereas at the end of segment two, it beeps for 10 seconds.  When I’m running, I need a stronger reminder, as my mind often is off on some other topic.  While walking, usually for one minute, I don’t need much of a signal to begin to walk again.  End of geek note.  

Hope all of this is helpful for you.  If you have questions, feel free to get hold of me.  

Persevere.  Whether running, walking or both.


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Race Report: Labor Day 30K

ORN: 18.7 miles, R/W 4/1, 3:19:53, 10:42/mile

Quick summary:

What a fun, unusual, well-run event, just west of Detroit. On hard-packed dirt roads under a full canopy of leaves, the cool weather allowed for a visually and physically pleasant shakedown of my fall marathon plans.

The Gory Details

The Labor Day 30K bills itself as an excellent training event for fall marathons and that it is. Most of the runners I talked with were using it as such.

My own objective for the day was a) to simply have a race and b) to shakedown a new approach to long races, following less-than-satisfying performances in two marathons last spring. Both objectives happened, in spades.

A bonus for the event was some extended time with my Mother-in-law! No, she didn't run but logistics worked out for me to drive her to spend the night with my sister-in-law and family who live in Michigan, on the way to the race site. With all the jokes and chuckles about MIL's, I'm very fortunate to have a wonderful relationship with Sue. I truly enjoyed the 9 hours in the car with her up and back. We covered the waterfront several times and even enjoyed a complete Cub-Mets broadcast on the drive home Saturday.

The race was in and around the little down of Milford, Michigan. Easily 3/4 of the miles looked just like this; it was a very satisfying and enjoyable visual surrounding. The other miles were through the village. All in all, the course was well done and accurately measured. It was steadily rolling as well...lots of ups and downs. This is helpful for me, the flatlander, as hills are so hard to come by here in north-central Indiana farm country.

The race started right on time, a fact I always appreciate. About 600 of us trundled off on the unusual 30K distance. The weather turned unusually cool the night before the race, with temps in the low 50s at the start and never getting much beyond 60. The wind added quite a chill, being 20-30mph all day. Fortunately, the heavy tree cover tended to break up the breeze, so it wasn't a huge factor. Clothing-wise, I found this to be the perfect day for cut-off tube socks on the arms.

My main objective for the race was to test the new strategy, combining the Run/Walk pattern of Galloway with the effort-control provided by using a heart rate monitor. I'll write about the plan in a separate post. I was pleased with how it went.

The really great part of this race was there is nothing remarkable to report! The run was, simply, a most enjoyable jaunt through wooded lanes of Michigan. I had some very nice conversations with folks along the way. Mostly though, I simply marveled at the scenery, so very, very different than what I run in all the time and a far cry from the urban setting I'll run in Chicago in five weeks.

After the eight-mile mark, the miles really started to seem to click by. That's a day when you know it is going well. I kept the 4/1 run/walk sequence and it held up well. I even skipped several of the walk breaks around mile 7-9, as I was in a fascinating discussion with a fellow runner. The legs barked at me a bit around mile 15 on one of the hills but that didn't last long. As I passed the 17 mile marker, I felt strong and picked up the pace. We turned back to the finish line just after the 18 mile mark and I opened it up and ran the last 0.7 at an 8:15 pace. I felt strong at the end, satisfied with a good run.

I had forgotten just how much I enjoy "Race Day". The atmosphere, the energy, the challenge, the need to think on your feet to changing circumstances, the ebbs and flows; all so enjoyable. This race had all of them and ended well.

Five weeks remain till Chicago. I'll do another 22 mile training run in two weeks, then a 10K race the week after that; those two runs should finish off the training. And, if Chicago goes well, some other plans for the rest of the fall may unfold nicely.

A good run, a good trip, a good long weekend. I'm grateful.

Persevere.



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Race Report: Illinois Marathon 2010

ORN:  26.2 miles, 5:23:07, 12:35/mile, R1/W1(to 19) then :30/1:30 to the end

Quick Summary:

Why do I run marathons?

I pondered this question deeply as I nauseously struggled through the last 4 miles of the Illinois Marathon on a warm, very humid race day.  During the drive home, I isolated the answer.

The Marathon is an excellent and exacting teacher.  

The Gory Details

Prerace

 

It's really nice to have a marathon so close to home, not requiring an overnight stay and the associated expense.  Up at 4:00am, on the road at 4:30am, my wallet in hand. With the change from Eastern to Central Time Zones at the Indiana/Illinois border, I was at the race site before 6:00am local.  I did a very easy one mile jog an hour before the 7:30am gun and enjoyed the atmosphere always present on race morning. 

The weather had been a question mark in the days leading up to the race.  Thunderstorms had rolled through around 2am but drifted to the east by morning.  It was overcast, humid and 65 at the start.  And this single fact would prove huge. 

The Race

About 10,000 marathoners and half marathoners set off together on a pleasant, flat course through the University of Illinois campus and the twin towns of Champaign and Urbana.  I jogged the first mile slowly to let the pack thin a bit, then shifted to the run one minute/walk one minute experiment I had planned for the day.  Somewhere during the second mile, I noticed my singlet was already soaked with sweat...that should have been a clue.  

The early race went smoothly.  At mile 5, I was 2:07 ahead of my projected pace, about where I wanted to be.  The pattern continued and by mile 10, I was 3:20 ahead of plan.  

At mile 11.5, the half marathoners split off and the course opened up considerably.  The split is always a funny point, observing the puzzled looks of the spectators wondering just how crazy you have to be to willingly make the turn to run 15 more miles.  I hit the half-marathon mat in 2:27:15, still 2:45 ahead of plan.  

At mile 15, I was 2:06 ahead but noticed something odd.  The temperatures were rising and, so it seemed, was my stomach.  At the end of each run cycle I found myself feeling quite nauseous.  This was unfamiliar territory for me and I figured it would just "go away" as many other issues often do.  This was wishful thinking.  I was drinking plenty of fluids, having a Gu at the bottom of each hour and a SaltStick at the top of each hour.  Through mile 17, I tried to first understand this queasiness and then, to determine what to do with it.  It got to the point I truly wondered if I simply needed to find a gutter or trash soon.  But, with nothing in my stomach, I didn't want to try.  

So I experimented further, altering my run/walk ratio.  By mile 19, after several iterations, I settled on a run 30 seconds, walk 90 seconds pattern.  This seemed to work; by the end of each run segment I had a trace of the nausea but it was bearable.  Thus, I finished out the rest of the race.  

At mile 20, I was 1:49 behind my target pace.  By the end of the race, I was 23:07 off the pace.   I was encouraged, though that my worst single mile was the 24th; miles 25 and 26 were progressively faster.  

The end of the race was nice...a slow build through the U of I campus, into the stadium, under the north goal post and across the finish line at the 50.  Marathon #16, in the books.   

Post Race

I must have not looked too good at this point.  Within seconds of crossing the line, a medic walked directly to me to ask how he could help me.  I convinced him I was OK and he left, though not completely convinced, I suspect.  

Finding a seat in the first row of the stands, I sat down to collect myself.  The nausea was still real.  What to do?  I racked my brain and, after about 10 minutes, decided the best thing to do was to get up, get out of the weather and make my way back to the car.  The slow, steady movement seemed to help.  Swapping the soaked singlet for a dry cotton T shirt once I got to my car, I slid into the driver's seat, flipped on the air conditioning and dug out a jar of cold ice tea I had packed in a cooler.  The first sip tasted great.  The cool air helped a lot.  Two jars of the ice tea and five minutes of A/C made a world of difference.  I headed home, feeling much better. 

Reflecting on the Question

Why do I run marathons?

The question I posed in the race's final hour continued to bug me.  Over those last four miles, I seriously wondered "why" I would continue.  Yet, as I drove across the prairie, analyzing what went wrong, comparing this race to other marathons, it hit me just why I run.

A well-known principle in training and teaching theory is the hot stove rule.  If you touch a hot stove, you get burned.  Doesn't matter who you are, whether an experience cook, a young child or drunken guest; you get burned just the same.  It is hot...it gives you warning before it burns you.  It is proportional...the longer you put your finger on it, the worse you get burned.   It is immediate...you get the message in a hurry.  

The marathon is such a teacher, though far more complex and nuanced.  And it teaches me so much.   That's why I run them.  The learning, alone, is worth the pain.  It extends far beyond running going to the core of life itself.  

Specifically, yesterday's lesson exposed, nakedly, my own stubbornness.  From last October, shortly after the Portland Marathon and my conversation with Jeff Galloway, I was determined to do a 1/1 marathon under 5 hours.   As I tracked the weather all week, I took no account of the fact that the rising temperatures would necessarily slow the pace I could hold.  I failed to take my own advice, which I emblazon on the sidebar of this blog:  Run the Best Race Conditions Allow.  I wrote about this goal way back on December 15, 2007.  But clearly forgot it yesterday.    

And the marathon, a skilled, complex, subtle and oh-so-clear teacher, reminded me of it again.  That helps.  There's a time to stubbornly cling to a certain concept.  And a time to see when forces larger than you rule.  

That's why I run marathons. 

Persevere.

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Big-Race Goodie Bags Lead to Fun Pix

ORN (Sat): 14.0 miles, R3/W1, 2:24:26, 10:19/mile

After my truncated "long" run last week, I hoped to have a more positive long-ish run yesterday, 2 weeks ahead of the Illinois Marathon. I walked out the door committed to 12 miles, hoping though to do 14 if the strained upper right calf cooperated.

On a perfect, sun-swept, cool spring morning, it was fabulous to simply be out. Since the plan is to run a 1/1 run/walk in the marathon, I wanted to run a 3/1 for training, while keeping the same run pace I intend to use on race day, 9:12/mile.

It worked. The pace felt fine. Better was the news about the right calf. Around mile 4, it mentioned to me "Hey, I'm still here!" But, it never got louder. Just a bit of a minor whine from the back seat which never got worse. This could be the story on race day... it was good to experience and know it is manageable.

But, I digress.

When John and I ran the Honda Los Angeles Marathon four weeks ago, we got, as usual, a full goodie bag at registration. It had the usual mishmash of local race notices, pain relievers, restaurant deals and odd nutritional drinks. Most funny, though, was a complimentary Sweatband emblazoned with the 2010 US Census logo. I guess the tax dollars were worth it for the publicity, but it seemed odd to John and me.

I did have the idea it would make a fun gift for my twin, six-year old grandsons, so John happily donated his to the cause. I gave it to the boys last week and they gladly posed for grandpa to take a photo.




Then, as two kindergarten boys are wont to do, Drew looped behind Nathan and they began to wrestle, leading to this epic image.




Which then raises the Census Question of the Day; Just how do they count two-headed boys?

I guess if you are a Census worker, you just shrug your shoulders and persevere.


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Galloway Run/Walk Pace Calculator, v 3.1

I just posted the latest version of the spreadsheet to calculate how fast you should run in a run/walk sequence to achieve a certain per mile pace.  If you have a geeky streak like me, you like to know such things in estimating what you need to do in a long race, using run walk.

I note this is updated as blog reader Tom B downloaded the earlier version and observed it would not work if you used a walk cycle other than 1 minute.  Thanks, Tom, for catching that and correcting the Excel formula!!  

I also updated the link on the side bar.  

It is amazing to me how efficient search engines are in helping folks find this odd little tool for a very specific purpose.  Truly amazed.  

Persevere.  

Thinking, Running. Running, Thinking

ORN: 24.0 miles, R1/W1, 4:47:55, 12:00/mile

At work late Friday afternoon, a colleage popped into my office. She had read this blog recently, noting I was now a "sponsored runner". She's preparing for a half-marathon this spring and had some shoe questions. She then asked about my prep for the Los Angeles Marathon. I noted this weekend, three weeks ahead of race day, was the time for the last long run. How long? she asked and then grimaced when I replied "23." She then asked me a very perceptive question.

"So, Joe, just what do you think about on such a long run?"

That is one of the best questions I've ever been asked about running. I stumbled a bit when talking with her. Yet, as I set out this morning, I decided to catalog just what I did think about. And several categories emerged.

Not surprisingly, I thought about running quite a bit. With a marathon only three week away, I played out the various preparations remaining, travel not the least of them. I also thought about the run/walk strategy. Once more, I used a one minute run, one minute walk plan for today's long run. Amazing...it hits a heart-rate zone which lets me feel like I can just go and go. The first 14 miles of the run was largely on snow and slush from the overnight flurries, which is not efficient. Nevertheless, the 1/1 worked great. No pain, no niggles, no nothing. Just running.

I also thought a lot about both family and work. There are a lot of situations in both. What do I do? Or not do? Who do I write? Who do I phone? Who do I leave alone? I find the long weekend runs often allow me enough time to truly process ambiguous situations more fully. Yet, I often can't get into those topics for a good hour or so after getting started.

Speaking of snow, I thought a lot today about just how to describe the bleakness of Indiana in late February. The 1/2" of overnight snow on top of gritty piles of snow from bigger storms earlier in the month reminded me of something, but just what? Then it hit me. It was like going to a wedding ceremony at which you know both families have some significant dysfunctions. They dress up nicely but you can see some of the ugliness still peeking through.

Better to just show some photos, though. I've told you before about the fields I run through...here they are on a really grey, overcast winter day.

Corn Field


Running Path

The running path here had drifted shut pretty well. The only place to run had been packed down but resembled a single-track, heavily-rooted trail run much more than the broad asphalt sitting underneath it.

Soybean Field

And here's my favorite soybean field. Dry, cold, silent.

All these photos are color, folks. This is just how grey it can get here. My wife and I have often speculated that the length and colorless-ness of winter is one reason high school and college basketball are so popular in the Midwest. It simply offers people a wonderful diversion from the toughness of the outdoors. I noted to publish photos of the same scenes in May...the contrast is fantastic.

I thought a lot about wisdom today. Not a common topic, but I think about it. Simply put, wisdom is proper application of knowledge. How do I learn wisdom? How do I assess it in my own life?

I though about, ached with and prayed for a good friend with whom we used to work. His wife lost a two-year battle with cancer a week ago. Today was her memorial service. What was he feeling? How was he doing? Now a widower at age 55, how was the grief working out? How can I support him? A man of faith, John is nevertheless struggling in knowing the hope God offers on one hand while facing very real loss on the other. I simply ached for him.

As the run ended, I shifted back to thinking about running. The 1/1 worked well, really well. And an idea. As the Garmin said I hit mile 22.8, I decided to run continuously the rest of the way. And so I did. The last 1.2 miles came in at a 10:22 pace, the fastest pace of the day. Better, it felt very comfortable. I ended the run feeling well prepared for Los Angeles. Assuming, of course, there is no snow on the ground there.

So that's what I thought about for nearly 5 hours. Some things noble, some mundane, but mostly useful. And that's what good questions do...they make us think more deeply.

Persevere. And think well.


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Split Time Clarification and updated Plans

ORN:  4 miles, R4/W1

 

Blogging buddies Darrell and David joined in the analysis on my last post, wondering how on earth I tied with Jeff Galloway at the Portland Marathon when my splits were better than his for 18 miles. 

 

Boy, I love number crunching. 

 

There was no typo...here's how it works.

 

The reason is that those paces were cumulative paces to that point in the race.  They were not paces between the mile markers.  Thus, when I slowed from a 10:30 to a 10:40 pace between mile markers 17.5 and 20.0, the actual splits included miles at 12:05 and 12:15.  Ouch.  Conversely, when Jeff pushed his cumulative pace from 11:11 at mile 21.1 to 11 flat at the end, meant he was probably doing 9:30-ish over those last miles. 

I also wondered; with Jeff doing a 1/1, just how fast did he actually run during his one minute of running? Loading info from his 21.1 mile split into my run/walk pace calculating spreadsheet, he held a 8:53 pace in each run segment. That sure seems doable. Makes me very curious to see just how this might work for me.

 

And, while I'm at it, the cube root of the arc tangent of the number of shopping days 'til Christmas is 0.356. 

 

Thanks to many of you for your responses to my post on recurring knee pain.  With your input, and my own consideration and reflection, the pain seems to simply be a case of overuse.  I had only four weeks between the HOA Marathon and the Portland Marathon...that probably triggered the knee pain on that race day.  Attempting 20+ miles then only two weeks after PDX was more of the same.  Duh.  This informs my planning for future races, eh??  I've done some hard running but nothing long in the past two weeks and it feels fine...the legs are fully back. 

 

The realization also altered, nicely, my immediate racing plans.

 

I had planned earlier in the fall to run the Monumental Marathon in Indy on November 7.  However, while gimping down the long hill past the Adidas offices at mile 23 of Portland, I decided I needed to scrap that race.  But, alas, a light came on in my brain last week; that event in Indy also has a half marathon!  So, I've signed up to do 13.1 that morning.  My failed 20 miler turns out to be a perfect "last long run" for a HM.  Game on.  Just a little shorter game now. 

 

And the 50K trail race on Dec 19?  No decision yet. 

 

Thanks a ton for all your input, folks, I truly appreciate it and learn from all of you. 

 

Go Phillies.

 

Persevere. 

Meet up with Jeff Galloway in Portland

ORN: 5K time trial @ 8:28 pace

Moments after crossing the finish line at the Portland Marathon two weeks ago, I received my medal from a helpful volunteer and turned to look at the finish area, pondering the moment. I saw a runner who finished just after me, wearing a "Galloway Running" shirt. I greeted her, mentioning I used Galloway's methods too.

"Well," she said, "Jeff is right there," motioning to a man just a few feet away talking to someone.

The lady was none other than Barbara Galloway, Jeff's wife. And in short order, less than a minute after we both completed a marathon, I was talking with Jeff Galloway.

I've written extensively on this blog about my application of Jeff's run/walk methods over the past three years. I was surprised and thrilled to be able to tell Jeff himself of my appreciation for what he has done to help me and so many others. In fact, as I told him, it was an ITB injury I suffered at Portland 2006 that triggered my first use of his plans in early 2007.


Jeff was very gracious to chat with me for several minutes in the amply supplied food area of the marathon (thanks for the white grapes and string cheese, marathon organizers!). We moved beyond my own experience, as I asked Jeff how his business was doing and how his seminars went at the Expo the day before. In one way, this mere conversation is testament to his training techniques; within 2 minutes of completing a 26.2 mile run, we were sane, breathing normally, speaking of broader issues...who would imagine that??

Jeff had some other folks walk up to greet him, so I got a photo with him, asked him to take the photo above of me with Barbara and I thanked him again. It was great to talk with someone who has done so much for running.

Later, I got thinking about what had happened. If Jeff finished the race just after I did, we must have run about the same total time. What run/walk plan did Jeff himself use? And what could I learn from this????

When I got home I pulled up the race splits for me and for Jeff. Sparing you the extra numbers, here is the cumulative race pace at each timing mat along the way for the two of us. (Interestingly, Barbara's splits were identical to Jeff's...they were together the entire race).

Distance... Joe's Pace ...Jeff's Pace
6.2 miles... 10:26 ... 10:59
8.9 ..........10:25 ... 11:04
13.1..........10:24 ... 11:04
17.5..........10:30 ... 11:05
20.0.........10:40 ... 11:10
21.1..........10:48 ... 11:11
26.2..........11:02 ... 11:00
Time ......4:48:55 .... 4:48:16

As described in my race report, my run went well through mile 18, when right knee issues slowed me down, evident in my paces. Jeff, on the other hand ran a very steady pace, and then accelerated over the last 5 miles. I ran a 3/1 run/walk. What did Jeff run? Same course, same day, virtually the same time...what was his running strategy? Could I learn it? Wouldn't it be interesting to compare??

So I emailed Jeff and simply asked him! The email found its way to him and he graciously answered my question. He told me he wanted to run a negative split so ran a 1/1 run/walk, through mile 23. Yes. He and Barbara ran one minute and
walked one minute. For 23 miles. From that point, they ran continuously the rest of the way, getting the negative split Jeff wanted. Arm in arm at the finish line.

Seriously.

And, that's when I saw both of them...calm, happy, conversant. Romantic even, in a running sort of way.

What to make of this?? Why do I subject my readers to such arcane analysis?? In his books, Jeff repeatedly makes the point that seemingly severely slow run/walk ratios work wonderfully well for recreational runners, allowing folks to lower the risk of injury and keep a steady pace for long distances. Jeff obviously follows his own advice, enjoys traveling with and running with his lovely wife and is happy to help others do the same.

His advice has been a huge help to me for three years now. He "walks the walk" (pardon the pun) and has been very gracious to so many, many runners. It's worth noting, even to this sort of detail.

Persevere. At any pace.

Analysis of Illinois Marathon

Abraham Maslow was quite the original thinker when he began studying healthy rather than ill people to understand human psychology.  Why not look at things that are going right to learn? 

 

Runners are no different...we tend to beat ourselves up when races go badly or injuries strike.  I sure did here and here.  While such analysis is necessary, it is not sufficient to fully understand running well.

 

I've been thinking a lot about last weekend's Illinois Marathon report.  Those were the facts; but the bigger question to me is just why the race went well, easily the best of the 11 marathons I've finished so far.  What did I learn??  What do I repeat??  Might that be helpful to others??  Hang on...here goes. 

 

Several things are clear to me and one fact perplexes me.   

 

Hydration is something I've been trying to get a handle on ever since bonking at Rocket City 18 months ago.  Best practice seemed to be to try to take in 20 oz of water per hour but I'd never really pulled that off.  This time, I came much closer. 

 

I started the day hydrated.  At my wife's birthday dinner out the night before the race, Gretchen looked oddly at me for a while, as I only drank ice water rather than my usual ice tea.  "Oh yeah, you're running tomorrow...I should have known," she smiled.  Driving to the race, I drank another 30 oz of water and felt properly hydrated at the start.  I carried with me two 10 oz bottles of water and, having practiced this (really), I focused on taking 2-3 swigs during every walk break.  While on the course, I simply refilled both bottles at water stops.

 

By so measuring, I drank 70 oz of water during the race.  Not quite the target, which would have been around 90 oz, but much closer than I've ever come.  This is in-flow...some of you are wondering about out-flow, I know.  I made pit stops at miles 6, 12 and 20.  Of more interest, though, was on the 2 hour drive home immediately following the race, I had 6 bananas, one apple, one chicken sandwich, 5 small chocolate chip cookies and 90 oz of water...and didn't need another pit stop until I got home. 

 

My conclusion?  Even on a cool, dry day, I was perspiring heavily, as I usually do.  With tech fabrics and a cool breeze, all the sweat evaporated, so I wasn't soaking wet.  But the crusty, salty residue was still noticeable on my face and legs.  So, the fluids were crucial, even on a cool day in April.

 

Less objectively, I clearly noticed how much better I felt along the way when I was drinking what seemed to be a LOT of water.  At one point around mile 17, I missed a shot to refill my bottles and had to wait a mile to the next water stop.  I felt dryer, I could tell the difference.  When I was regularly hydrating, though, I almost felt better "lubricated".  Hard to describe...but it was very real.

 

Calories.  Water is just part of the formula.  I also had one pack of Gu at bottom of each hour on the course.  This worked out to four Gu's during the race, as I skipped the one at 4:30.  On at least two occasions, I truly noticed the impact of the sugars about 10 minutes after slurping down the gel.  

 

Electrolytes.  The third leg on the milk-stool of this plan is replacing the minerals I was sweating out.  I took one Salt Stick at top of each hour, consuming four during the race.  This is designed to avoid the severe cramping I felt at Air Force marathon last year.  I had no hint of a cramp at all this time.  Most significantly, I've never had a marathon in which my feet didn't cramp up when I pulled off my shoes and socks after the race.  Never.  This time, I braced myself a bit when I changed to clean socks 30 minutes after finishing.  To my pleasure, it was just a changing of socks.  Not a single foot cramp at all.   

 

The other reason I like these three things together is that I can control them.  I'm not dependant on the particular Gatorade on the course or the presence or absence of Gel on the course.  I know I can count on clean water and that's all I need to make it work. 

 

So much for food and water...how about training factors??  Three that seemed to work well.

 

Run 2 minutes/Walk 1 minute.  This ratio of run/walk seemed extreme to me, even after using it for over two years now.  I've never run a race at such a low ratio and hardly any training runs.   Yeesh, what a wimp, I say to myself, that seems really balky.  And no rhythm.  Dude, what are you up to?  

 

I tried it anyway.  To my utter amazement, it was a huge help.   I only skipped two walk breaks before the Mile 25 marker; the first break when the pack was still big and another one in mile 5 when I was in a fascinating conversation with another runner.  I started just feeling like I was on a series of off and on ramps on the freeway.  My watch sounded, I pulled off to the side to walk and swig some water.  The pack would move by me, I fell behind.  Then the timer would ring again and I was instantly folded back into the pack, gently passing folks who just passed me.  Each break was a refreshment.  Though mile 22 or so, I found that I had to work to slow my pace to my targeted 9:30..often I was at 9:00 or below.  

 

I suspect one other reason this felt so comfortable was that I had shifted all my training runs to 6/1 and 7/1 ratios in the four weeks ahead of the race, holding the run segments at 9:20 or so.  

 

Did it seem slow?  In a way, yes.  Was it worth missing the wall?  Yep.  And my overall time was only 5 minutes worse than the 3/1 ratio I ran in Memphis.  I have new respect for all that Jeff Galloway has promoted for so long. 

 

Making the world flat.  Well, the course anyway.  At Memphis, the severe camber of the course took a toll.  In this race, I consciously sought camber-less portions of the streets all the way. It helped.   

 

Dressing for Success.  The temp was about 37F at the start.  A lot of folks were overdressed, in tights, multiple layers and more.  Having run outdoors all winter, 37 felt balmy to me.  One throw-away sweatshirt jettisoned at mile 2 was all the extra I needed.  I pulled my long sleeve tech shirt off at mile 20 and finished in short sleeves (with the temp at 48F). temps).   

 

OK, all that stuff helped.  Here's one that perplexes me.

 

Lack of a long run.  As I mentioned in the race report, all this happened with a single 16 mile run, two weeks earlier as my longest run since Memphis Marathon in early December.  This confounds all conventional wisdom.   How did I enjoy a 26 mile run with no slow down with one long run 10 miles short of a marathon??  I don't recommend this, to myself or anyone else.  But why did it work?? 

 

Wow, this has gone on long.  And, as I've said before, this blog is often simply a vehicle for me to think out loud.  I hope it is helpful to some others as well. 

 

I welcome your reactions, questions, disagreements or other perplexings.  And, whatever else you do, do persevere. 

 

Evaluating Jeff Galloway Training Methods

ORN: 6.7 miles total; 5x1 mile intervals @ 8:26

(Note:  I updated this report on December 4, 2011, with 5 years experience.  Click here for the update.)

With the United States Air Force Marathon only 6 days away, I have little of interest to write about on running…such is the taper. Stepping back, though, it is worth capturing some thoughts about training.

On October 1, 2006, I had a marvelous time finishing the Portland Marathon in 4:21, meeting many new friends on the trip and starting to think I could really whip this marathon thing into shape. One week later, I found pain in my right knee which would not go away. It turned out to be the dreaded ITB inflammation. It was my first significant running injury and I had no idea what to do.

Doctor’s visits, massage, foam rollers; none really eased the pain. I ran very little in the months that followed; I actually bonked and had a DNF in my first marathon with Darrell in December, 2006. As we moved into 2007, I really wondered just what was going on.

Out of desperation, I began to look seriously at Jeff Galloway's system. I was slightly familiar with it before hand but dismissed much of it, because I wanted to be a “runner” not a “run/walker.” Yet, his assertion that his program could help avoid injuries appealed to me.

My first positive clue was his simple description on how to diagnose over-pronation (look at your shoes…if they wear out inside your big toe, you are overpronating). Hmmm…that helps. I took that info to a good running store; they confirmed it all and switched to a motion control shoe.

Then, in mid-January 2007, I just started doing run/walk. Starting very conservatively, with a Run/Walk ratio of 1 minute run/2 minutes walk, I got out the door again. Amazingly to me, I was gently and gradually running, without pain. I stayed with it. I bought two of his books and read them carefully.

Through 2007, I stayed with the program, getting over the “weirdness” of suddenly walking and then running again all through the run. Figuring out how to make a watch do the timing for me and let me just enjoy the run. I did the Indy Marathon in October, 2007 at a 3/1 pace and it went well until mile 23, when I tried to run continuously the last 3 miles. Then I bonked. Yet I felt fine at the end.

The target race was the 2007 Rocket City Marathon. It was there I first met Jeff Galloway, as he was speaking at the pre-race pasta party (photo courtesy of Darrell’s Celebrity Photos, Inc). During his remarks, he casually mentioned he was going to start the race at a 1/1 ratio and perhaps increase that along the way, as weather and fitness allowed. I dismissed his comments as fluff.

Why? Well, shoot, I had read all his stuff, and from his target times, I convinced myself I could do a 4:15 and, boy, was I primed. And it worked…well at least for 16 miles it worked. My 9/1 run/walk target ate me alive on that hot and humid day and the last 4 miles were a real death march.

Contrast my experience that day to Jeff’s. Reviewing the race results, I went across the half-marathon mat at 2:07:33, a full 13.5 minutes ahead of Galloway’s 2:21:05. But, somewhere around mile 17, I recall hearing a bunch of light-hearted chatter amongst runners gaining on me as I sunk into the sludge of fatigue. Sure enough, it was Jeff and his merry band of followers, looking quite fresh. I looked at Jeff as he passed me and said to him “OK, now I believe you.” He simply grinned, as if to say he’d heard that sentiment many times before. He finished in 4:45:53, nearly 10 minutes ahead of me. And I suspect he felt pretty good at the end, unlike the nausea and trembles I had.

Both long-time readers of this blog then suffered through several months of my self-flagellation following the race. Not only was my ego damaged, but my knee acted up again…not ITB this time, but some sub-patellar inflammation. I strongly suspect dehydration had a major factor in that knee problem. So, back to basics for the spring. Less aggressive R/W ratios, shorter races and some relaxation. More emphasis on hydrating well during training. Galloway also suggested runners over age 40 run only every other day.

So I further modified my training pattern. It worked for shorter races. Five half-marathons in 9 weeks went well; four of the five with negative splits and each beat my target times for the race.

Then, the 6 hour trail run in July; I went very conservative, with a 2/1 ratio, plus walking up the hills on a warm, muggy day in the Indiana woods. 27.5 miles and no Wall in sight. Amazing.

My summary assessment of Galloway's method so far is it seems to work. Something about the change of muscle use during a run, from running to walking, seems to allow rest or change that avoids damage. I do most of my shorter runs at a 6/1 ratio; long training runs I back off to 5/1 or 3/1. All of that works. I don't fully understand why, but I can sense it, both as I run and after I run.

What I have not seen as working is Galloway's time prediction methods. I've worked through it and it always predicts I'll run a race a lot faster than I can. I'm not sure what to think about that. Yet, since speed is not a big issue to me, this issue is less of a problem. The big plus is simple; no injuries all this year; each race has been enjoyable; negative splits are a rush.

So, this brings us to my fall series, with three marathons in fairly close succession. Will all of this focus on injury-free training work out at the longer distance?? I truly don’t know. So stay with me as we see what this two-year-long experiment brings about.

The plan for the Air Force Marathon this Saturday is simple; run a 3/1 and stay with it throughout. Carry my own fluids and sip on every walk break. Eat two Clif Bars during the race. The weather forecast right now is helpful, though far from perfect. Start temps in the mid 50s, heading to the low 70s by the end. Can I carry it to the end??

Thanks for listening; that in itself takes real perseverance.

Race Report: Rocket City Marathon

ORN: 26.2 miles, 4:56:12, R/W various, 11:20/mile

Quick Summary

The Rocket City Marathon was a fantastically well-run race, exceeding my expectations. I had a wonderful experience with friends. And my own performance really stunk.

The first 16 miles went very well, the wheels came off the wagon over the next and I was reduced to a miserable shuffle for the last five. I felt really rotten at the end, the worst of any of my marathons.

I did recover after the race and have much to ponder. As I’ve said before, the marathon is a great teacher; I’ve just been schooled.


All the Gory Details

Prerace

I left the house Friday morning with an inch of fresh snow on the driveway. During the 7.5 hour drive, I got to a very different land! From lead-grey winter skies with slush on the ground, I came to blue skies and upper 60s; what a treat!

I met Darrell at the hotel and it was truly great to see my running pal again. We immediately started gabbing and it never stopped all weekend. I grabbed my packet at the expo and we joined up with other runners for a very easy 2 mile run through some of the historic neighborhoods of Huntsville Alabama. The tour was a lot of fun and got a view of the “Old South” in many ways. And, after three days of long-distance car driving, the very easy run felt great on my legs.

We went to the group spaghetti meal and met up with Wes and Dee Dee who had just arrived from Atlanta. The conversation level jumped up another couple of notches, then ratcheted up further when we were joined at our table by a pair of triatheletes who live very near them in Atlanta, plus some grizzled veteran runners from Boulder, Colorado. The food was good, the people were great and we had an excellent speaker in Jeff Galloway, who actually ran the marathon. I had a chance to talk with Jeff a bit and I have much more to say about him. Later, David walked over from another hotel and the five of us had a great time chatting in the hotel lobby. David is a cool guy, a sincere, self-effacing man of significant substance.

Race Day—early

In what was probably a harbinger of the day to come, I woke up around 4am with, shall we say, some “intestinal distress.” It finally resolved but I was awake for good. Not wanting to bother Darrell, I pulled on some clothes and slipped out of the room. I found several other insomniac marathoners in the lobby; we had instant empathy! I then walked outside to view the finish line. I always like to have some idea of exactly how the ordeal is going to end. It also turned out to be a great source of merriment for Darrell, me scouting the finish line in the pre-dawn darkness.

As I walked around, I realized I was perfectly comfortable being outside at 4:15am on December 8 wearing shorts and a T shirt. What was the temperature going to be like by late morning, in the last few miles?? For about the 10th time, I changed my plan of what I was going to wear, shifting to the very lightest of the 8 shirts I had brought along.

Breakfast was two packs of instant oatmeal, a diet Coke for the caffeine (I hate coffee) and a bottle of Gatorade. I wondered, in retrospect, how wise this was. Race time finally rolled around but since the start line was just outside the front door of the hotel, we sauntered down around 7:30am and had plenty of time to be part of the 8am start.

In the pack, we met David again and met Lana and Michele for the first time. It was great to meet more fellow running bloggers. We chatted a bit but then heard the National Anthem, then the gun, and off we went.

The Good

I started out with Wes, as we both hoped to run a 4:15 race and had agreed on a 9/1 run/walk ratio. Darrell stayed with us until the first walk break, as well as two of the guys we met the night before from Boulder. Wes and I then had a nice time through mile 4. I needed the port-o-potty, Wes went on and I thought we’d reconnect. However, I missed him a mile or so later but he let me go on, noting I appeared to be in a “zone.” I’m not sure how much of a “zone” it was, but the first 15 miles did go consistently, all coming in at 9:40, plus or minus. I felt fine and was enjoying the run.

The first point of concern came around mile 12 when I felt a hot spot on the ball of my right foot and a corresponding “less than cool” spot on my left. I have never had blisters with my current sock/shoe combination but now I had one forming. I knew I had to deal with it. Fortunately, there was a first-aid station at mile 14. I swooped in asked for some tape and covered the blisters. The left foot was fine the rest of the way; the right foot was reasonable. I was thankful for the great folks at the station.

At mile 15, we reached the far end of the course and turned to work our way back to the finish. I was only a minute behind pace for 4:15 at this point, even with the foot repair stop.

The Bad

Going towards the turn around point, we were running into a mild breeze. It felt good in the muggy morning. When we turned, that breeze was now at our back and, in effect, we were running with no movement of air. It quickly took a toll. I sensed my heart rate creeping up, noted many other folks starting to walk. The trip back was going to be a lot harder.

I rolled back to a 5/1 run/walk ratio and held that for a couple of miles which checked in around 10:45. Yet the grind was on. Modifying the ratio to 3/1 seemed to work so I held that pattern through mile 22. I knew the 4:15 was gone, as well as a 4:30. Yet I was moving and seemed to be not much different than other runners around me.

The Ugly

The day’s temperature continued to rise. The humidity rose as well, yielding some intermittent light drizzle mixed in with the heavy cloud cover and thick air. It was taking a toll. Coming up the one moderate hill in the entire course just past the mile 21 marker, I found I was struggling with the 3/1 ratio. I relented and cut back to run a minute, walk a minute.

This slow pace gave me much time to think. I was passed repeatedly by people who were shuffling as I was, yet going faster. The last four miles all came in at 15 minutes even; I felt as if I was an embarrassment to the world of marathoning. I know it is hardly all about me; yet the mind plays funny games when fatigue sets in.

It took a full hour to cover the last 4.2 miles. Mercifully, the final 0.2 was on a gentle downhill slope, from which I could clearly see the finish line, the crowd, the flags and hear the enthusiastic announcer. He seemed to get everyone’s name and hometown announced. It was a rush to my tired mind to hear my name too. I saw Dee Dee smiling and waving and kept running over the line. It was over, just barely beating the 5 hour mark.

Immediate Post Race

The organizers had a marvelous system whereby each and every runner had someone walk with them through the chip removal, medal placing and food area. In so doing, they could see the condition of each finisher. I’m not sure what I looked like at this point; the lady who walked me along looked like my mother when she asked me if I had a fever or not; she knew I did and didn’t really believe my protestations to the contrary. Yet, this lady was not my Mom! I told her I just wanted to walk, so she congratulated me and let me gimp away.

I hobbled around the parking lot, working back to the spot I had seen Dee Dee. I really and truly wanted to see Wes come in. This was his first marathon and I wanted to help make it a big event for him. I chatted with her for a few minutes when I started to get foot cramps and felt nauseous. Dee Dee, acting as another surrogate Mom, urged me to head inside and sit down.

I tottered inside, feeling worse as I went. I grabbed some Gatorade and a pile of salty crackers and asked the organizers where I could simply sit. I couldn’t imagine even making the walk to the elevator and up to our room. I finally plopped down and just had to sit for nearly a half hour to collect myself. The nauseous feeling continued; I feared eating anything. I felt chilled, shaky and my feet were cramping. I remembered this feeling however; I had exactly the same problem after the St. Louis Marathon 18 months ago. That memory was a relief; I knew the feeling would pass with time; I only needed to wait it out.

Eventually, I decided to head back to my room. On the way through the crowd, Darrell spotted me. He had rocked his run and, as a friend will do, was looking all over for me. He helped me to our room and let me get into a cool bath. That seemed to help. I cooled down, started eating salty crackers and drinking water. Conditions improved.

By evening, I was feeling much better. We went to dinner with Wes and Dee Dee, recapping all the day’s events. After we wished the two of them a safe drive back to Atlanta, Darrell and I walked a mile or two in a nearby park which also felt good. On Sunday morning, I took Darrell to the airport and then made the drive home.

The Summary

It was a marvelous weekend. On the drive home, I figured out much of what happened and how I think I can approach future races. I laid out my goals for 2008. I analyzed much about Jeff Galloway and his methods. I’ll leave each of for future posts; it would be cruel and unusual to ask you to read further. Pictures will also follow.

Persevere. I was reduced to that and that alone in the last four miles on Saturday. And it was enough.

A Run/Walk Pace Calculator

ORN: 7.6 miles, R5/W1, 1:16:45, 10:11/mile; then 5.1 miles, R9/W1, 49:12, 9:34/mile

One sure-fire way to strike fear in the hearts of many people is to ask them to solve a story problem. You know the one from school beginning with “A train leaves Boston at 8:30, heading to New York at 45mph….” Scary, for many.
But not all.

Some of us more geek-oriented people actually LIKE story problems. When I saw one on a test, I always licked my chops, knowing I was going to get lots of credit. Apparently, my blogging buddy Wes has a similar bend. So, Wes and I collaborated on a public service project to solve a particular story problem for all our running pals.

The story problem goes like this. “So, I’m using a run/walk plan in a race. If I want to have a certain pace per mile and have a certain run/walk interval, just how fast do I have to run during my run segments?” You can hear the teeth gnashing over that one.

Wes and I worked through this issue and reduced all the variables to a simple spreadsheet, which we’ve posted on line. You can viewthe Run Walk Pace Calculator or you can download it here. It should allow you to enter your desired overall pace, your walk pace and then learn what your run pace should be. Further, we have two tabs on this spreadsheet. One is a general purpose calculator for the run pace. The other is a race-specific calculator. You’ll get slightly different answers from each one. If you want to know just WHY you’d get a different answer, I’d tell you but that, my friends would involve another story problem and you really don’t want another one anyway.

We’d appreciate it if you could try to open it, test drive it and let us know if it makes sense. It is, after all, a public service and we aim to serve.

I applied this today in my long run, two weeks now from Rocket City. Utilizing David’s example, I took a 7+ mile warm up at an easy pace, then reset my watches and attempted to run the last five miles at exactly the pattern I plan to use in the marathon. The calculator told me I needed to run at 9:22 with a 9/1 sequence to hit the 9:43 overall pace I want for a 4:15 marathon. Could I do that on legs still tired from sub 8 minute miles on Thursday and 7 more miles just before it? I was pleased that it worked. My mile splits for the last five were 9:36, 9:46, 9:33, 9:31 and 9:27. Given that my Garmin usually about 4-6 seconds slow per mile, those are just about right. Can I do that for 26?? Well, as they say, that’s why they play the game.

Enjoy the calculator. Enjoy the laugh at the geeks. Enjoy the cleaned up blog style here; I hope it reads a little cleaner for you now.

And, as always, persevere.

Peter Drucker meets Jeff Galloway

ORN: 20.2 miles, 3:44:13, R3/W1, 11:07/mile

The most influential individual on my professional career is undoubtedly Peter Drucker. His many books and articles have truly shaped my philosophy of business, management and strategy.

Drucker’s view of planning was captured in this illustration he often used.

A pilot flying from New York to Los Angeles files a flight plan before take off, laying out the plane’s route, altitude and speed. Yet, once in the air, the pilot seldom follows that plan exactly. Weather, traffic and timing alter that plan. Despite those changes, though, the plane never lands in San Francisco; it still gets to Los Angeles.

Given Drucker’s influence on me, it’s not surprising I’d apply his work to running. Last spring, I set out to rehab my ITB injury using Jeff Galloway's methodology. During the summer, I set up a plan designed to finish up at the Rocket City Marathon, now just three weeks away.

The Drucker-esqe plan change came to the fore after last Saturday’s aborted 28 miler due to serious ITB pain in my left leg. During the past week, I crunched the plan extensively, trying to make a good decision on how to finish out the training still hit the goal. I decided to rest until Thursday and take a couple of short runs. A two miler Thursday and a three miler Wednesday went pain free. Yet I needed to somehow know how the knee would hold up with marathon-like stress. So, I decided to try to go for 20 miles this morning. Three weeks pre-marathon seemed the right time.

On another nice fall day in Indiana, I took off. I altered my usual 20 mile route to have a 5.5 mile loop, an 11 mile loop and another four mile loop, all starting and ending at home. If it fell apart, I didn’t want to have to walk a long way again.

The first loop was a ryan shay 5.5 mile memorial run. As a father of sons the same age as Ryan, I found myself thinking much about Ryan’s parents. It was simply moving. My prayers continue for them as they work through the many stages of grief. Life is hard. We need each other.

The second loop was uneventful. Which is what I wanted to have today.

The last loop felt like a last loop. With 18 miles last weekend and virtually no running all week, the legs felt flat. Interestingly, my left knee never quibbled once all day. Yet, my right knee began to just be sore. No ITB pain, just a general soreness. I worked through it, thinking particularly of Rob's consistent example of choosing to work through the tough patches of a run. Twenty miles was about all I could do today. But I got it done. And it felt good.

On the question of “what to eat while on a long run” (you were asking that question, weren’t you??), I am really getting to like Clif Shot Bloks, the Margarita flavor, thanks to a good suggestion months ago by David. I cut each blok in half and ate a half blok every 30 minutes. I made a further modification by sprinkling a little table salt in the zip-lock bag I carried the shots in and shook it up. This spread a little salt on the surface of each of the sticky chunks. Particularly in the later stages of the run, it was nice to pop the blok, taste the extra salt, then slowly chew the blok. It seemed to work. Thanks, David.

So, despite the plan change, we’re over the final ridge and now tapering into the marathon three weeks from this morning. It’s gonna be fun in Huntsville, sharing a room again with Darrell, meeting up with Wes, and hopefully connecting as well with Lana, Michele and David. Three weeks to go…I can hardly wait.

Persevere.

23, 33-19

ORN: 23.2 miles, 4:15:33, 11:01/mile, R3/W1

Up at 4:30, running at 5:00am on a Saturday…yep, running will lead you to do odd things. Such was the case today, as I needed to get over the Second Range on my journey to the Rocket City Marathon. The Galloway plan I’m experimenting with uses over-mileage and this is part of it.

The run itself was wonderfully unremarkable, very enjoyable and quite instructive. The day was perfect, with temps in the low 50s, a clear sky with a nearly-full moon still high in the sky for the first half of the run. I packed Accelerade and Gummie Bears today and the combination seemed to work well.

The miles just kind of clicked off, so I won’t bore you with many details. When the sun finally peeked over the eastern horizon, I looked at my Garmin and noted I already had 13.4 miles in the bank. The pace was steady throughout, and the 3/1 ratio kept it in the high 10s and low 11s. I really felt I could have kept that ratio going for a long time. To work on mental toughness, though, I ran the last two miles without interruption for the quickest miles of the day, 10:22 and then a 9:33 at the end. No pain and very little weariness. No soreness at all the rest of the day. The new pattern of thin sock/thick sock has fully eliminated blisters. It was a fun run. And, yes, I could have easily added three more miles today.

The next step is a training marathon in three weeks. I’ll run it at 3/1 as well and remind myself it’s just a training run with friends, a T-shirt and a medal.

But all this begs the obvious question: Why get up at 4:30am for a training run?

Blame it on ESPN.

Earlier in the week, my good friend Don called me with an extra ticket to this afternoon’s football game between Purdue and Notre Dame. Given my family’s long connection with Notre Dame, it is always a special treat so I accepted his offer. Midweek, the TV gurus decided this game would be a noon kickoff. So, in order to get in 23 miles, clean up, fight the traffic for this sellout game and be there for the game, I had to be on the run by 5am.

The game was fun, in that Purdue won fairly handily, 33-19, over this year’s hapless Fighting Irish. Besides the football, however, it was a fascinating contrast. Whereas I started my day with 4+hours in the quiet solitude of a long training run. I then spent 4+ hours with 65,000 others at the game. Our seats were in the nosebleed portion of the end zone, just under the main stadium speakers, so we were blasted with pounding music, commercials and announcers all day. What a contrast in both enjoyable events.

With Don's help, I made a 39 second video for my extended family during halftime...you might enjoy it as well.

What a way to spend a perfect fall day in Indiana. Persevere, alone or in a crowd.

This isn't Indiana, Toto

ORN: 10.3 miles total, including 5K, 26:06, 8:23/mile

We are taking a vacation this week in Door County, Wisconsin. This is what I get to see out the window each morning…wow. We’ve been coming up here for 23 years now. We usually came in June or July, though, since school schedules dictated vacation options. With the “empty nest” now, we can pick our own schedule. Visiting here after Labor Day allows much lower rates, less traffic, quiet walks and cooler temperatures. For Gretchen and me, the perfect vacation is a stack of books, a view of water and no schedule.

Not to mention good running.

Door County consists of a number of small villages along a narrow peninsula between Lake Michigan and Green Bay. A network of county roads and public parks on rolling hills makes for an endless variety of visually appealing and challenging runs. This topography, coupled with the cool temperatures, low humidity and clear blue skies of early autumn, makes running here about as enjoyable as it gets.

After long runs the past two weekends, the schedule today called for a 10 mile run to include a 5km time trial. Galloway’s idea is to stress the body at a prescribed pace that will mimic the aerobic demands of the target race. All that works out to a 5K target time of 25:15 for me.

So, I set out this morning exploring the country roads. The Garmin, as useful as it is in many setting, earns its price when traveling. I explored and ran out a little over 5 miles, turned around and headed back to the condo. I did 6+ miles at a 10:30 pace, using a 5/1 ratio. I took a walk break, reset the Garmin to the “Virtual Trainer” mode and set off on the time trail. Mile one was exactly on target pace at 8:07, with mile two almost there at 8:13. I could still make that up. Yet, during mile 3, I could feel my form break down, my left thigh and hip began to tighten and it all leaked to an 8:49 mile. I pushed the last tenth with an 8:17 pace but still missed my target time by 51 seconds.

I’m disappointed I missed this target. Does it call into question my shot at a 4:15 marathon in Huntsville? I don’t think so. It helps to keep focus on all the training that remains.

And, yeah, I’ll persevere.